A classic strategy session starts with what isn’t working, and by lunch the team has run out of energy. We start with the future you believe in. We define what has to be true for it to happen. Only then do we take an honest look at today.
Planning a strategy session or a team offsite before the end of 2026? October to December is the right time.
“We started with the problems and everyone deflated”
Today’s reality only appears in step 4. By then it is a diagnosis, not a verdict.
“We ended up with last year’s plan, plus 10%”
Planning from today only gets you a slightly better today. From the future you can see a different level.
“The CEO talked, everyone else nodded”
An anonymous team pulse before the session. Everyone has a voice before the first slide.
“Everything was a priority, nothing was dropped”
You leave with 2–3 bets and a stop list: what you deliberately stop doing.
“The document went straight into a drawer”
Instead of a document, a hypothesis tracker and check-ins at 30, 60 and 90 days.
“The plan broke within two months”
We prepare for several scenarios. When the world shifts, you update your bets instead of rewriting the strategy.
We don’t ignore where you are today. We look at it once we know where we’re going.
| Classic session | Strategy from the future |
|---|---|
| Starts with SWOT and problems | Starts with the future the team believes in |
| One forecast for the year | 2–3 scenarios and readiness for each |
| A list of initiatives where everything is a priority | 2–3 bets and a stop list |
| The most senior people do the talking | An anonymous pulse beforehand, everyone is heard |
| Strategy as a document | Strategy as a set of hypotheses you test |
| A one- or two-day event | A 90-day process, if you need it |
The order of the steps is the method. First a picture of the future, then the conditions, and only then reality and decisions.
An anonymous survey: what people believe, what they fear, what should stop. Plus a short scan of trends in your industry.
2–3 scenarios for the next 3–5 years, from optimistic to difficult. We don’t try to guess the future; we prepare for different versions of it.
A letter from 2030, or a headline about you. What are you proud of? Who are you for your clients and your team?
What has to be true about the market, clients, your company, people and capabilities for that future to happen.
Which of those conditions are already partly in place (your strengths) and where the critical gaps are.
2–3 strategic bets, owners, the first 90 days. And an honest list of what you stop doing.
“A year has passed and we failed. Why?” We look for risks while they can still be built into the plan.
We track which conditions are coming true and adjust the bets at 30, 60 and 90 days.
The main outcome is a list of the conditions your future depends on, and the signals that show whether they are coming true. That is how a strategy stays current beyond the first two months.
When a hypothesis stops holding, the bet built on it is reviewed at the next check-in.
For teams that need a shared direction and energy rather than a full strategy.
You leave withA shared picture of the future, 2–3 bets, a stop list.
For leadership teams that need concrete decisions. The night between the two days lets decisions settle.
You leave withA one-page strategy, a 90-day roadmap, a hypothesis tracker.
For teams whose previous strategies stayed on paper.
You leave withStrategy as a process: bets tested and adjusted in practice.
Two days: the future, then choices. You leave with a one-page strategy and a 90-day plan.
Discuss this format
Founder of Ukraine’s first innovation consultancy. Worked as a strategic designer at BCG X in New York. Holds an EMBA from IE Business School, completed leadership programmes at Stanford, and has taught Innovation Management at KSE Graduate Business School for 10 years.
Combines top-tier international consulting experience with a deep, inside understanding of how businesses operate under real uncertainty.
LinkedIn →We don’t dream; we work with scenarios, including difficult ones. But if your operations are on fire and the goal is to survive the next three months, I’ll be honest: you need a crisis session, not a strategy session.
That is exactly why the method works with several scenarios and hypotheses instead of one forecast. You don’t guess the future; you decide which signals will tell you to change course.
We will, in step 4. The only difference is that by then you know where you’re heading, so problems become a list of gaps to close rather than a reason to give up.
Businesses, non-profits and teams inside large companies. Anyone planning a strategy session or an all-hands who wants something to actually change afterwards.
One to two weeks before the session we run an anonymous team pulse and a short scan of trends in your industry. From you we need a 30-minute call and the brief. There is no need to prepare presentations or reports for the strategy session.
The facilitator doesn’t push her own opinion; she runs the process: keeps time, gives everyone a voice and brings the conversation to decisions. In a meeting the leader usually does the talking. In a facilitated strategy session the team defines the bets it is willing to sign up to.
For decision-making, 6–15 people from the leadership team is ideal. An all-hands can include several dozen people, with a different programme.
1 day from £1,200, 2 days from £2,000, a session with 90 days of support from £3,700. The exact price depends on the number of participants, preparation and format (in person or online). I’ll confirm it after a short conversation about your context.
Tell me what’s happening and what you want from the session, or book a short call. No obligation. I’ll suggest a format and a programme.
Fill in the brief before we meet